When the White House Calls
Dennis Rude
There aren't many stonemasons who can say they've jackhammered the White House. But during the Reagan administration, that's exactly what I did.
A Piece Falls, the Phone Rings
It started with an emergency. A chunk of cornice broke off and landed on the driveway on the east wing of the White House — right above Nancy Reagan's office. The piece didn't just crack; it fell. And when you're talking about the White House, that's not a call-your-insurance-company situation. That's a make-damn-sure-another-piece-doesn’t-fall type situation.
They called because they knew me from other things we were doing down there—repointing work and restoring the entrance.
Joe Moss
Within a day or two, we were on site. No elaborate crew. Just two of us--Joe Moss and me.
So What Actually Caused It?
Here's where it gets interesting — and honestly, a little frustrating. The limestone itself wasn't the original culprit. It was latex paint.
Dennis Rude
The cornice and the stone behind it had been painted over with latex, which trapped moisture instead of letting the stone breathe. The salt and moisture slowly destroyed the limestone. Walking the entire perimeter of the White House, we found the same problem repeating itself: flashing that had worked loose from the reglets, essentially turning every joint into a funnel for rainwater.
The reglet system (those precision-cut slots in the stone that lock lead flashing in place) is designed to be a complete waterproofing system when done right. Water is supposed to roll off the lead roof, tuck behind the flashing, and drain safely away. When that flashing comes loose, you've got water and salts sitting against stone behind a latex paint seal. The stone doesn't stand a chance.
Cutting New Stone
Joe Moss carving cornice replacement piece for East Wing of the White House (1984)
The repair process was methodical. First, we took out the damaged pieces — one or two stones forming the corner, including the return pieces. Then came the templating: cutting a joint, inserting pattern paper, and tracing the profiles so new pieces could be carved to match.
One detail worth noting: the original east and west wings were built in the 1940s using Alabama limestone. When it came time to put stone back, we made a deliberate call to use Indiana limestone instead. Alabama limestone doesn't weather as well, and there was no reason to replicate a material that was going to struggle in the elements. It was the right call.
The Reality of Working at the White House
No safety harnesses. No fall protection. Just two masons on a cornice edge doing their jobs, which, I always say with a smile, was normal for the time.
Dennis on “scaffolding”
What actually slowed things down wasn't the height or the stonework. It was the access. Every single day, even after weeks on site, you're waiting an hour or more at the guardhouse for clearance. And the moment the president flew back into town, work stopped. Immediately. You packed up and left. No questions asked.
One day during my lunch break, I dozed off sitting under a tree on the South Lawn in the summer heat. The Secret Service woke me up. "You can't sleep here."
Fair enough.
The Takeaway All These Years Later…
The White House job is a good story, but it's also a useful case study. A landmark building with presumably every resource available still fell into the same trap that takes down historic masonry everywhere: incompatible materials and poor craftsmanship--and I’ll add lack of periodic inspections to that. The danger of a falling piece of limestone could have potentially been avoided.
Latex paint on historic limestone is still a mistake people make. If masonry needs to be painted, use potassium silicate paint. Loose flashing in reglets is still a problem that gets ignored until something falls. The fix isn't complicated — it's just a matter of actually going up and looking.
